Today Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley visited Ahmedabad. Jaitley addressed a seminar on IDS Income Declaration Scheme 2016 at Gujarat University hall in GMDC ground. The seminar is open for all those who are interested.It is attended by Gujarat Chief Minister Anandiben Patel, Revenue Secretary in centre Hasmukhh Adhia and other state officials.
Jaitley said that due to government’s moves, there was panic among those having illegal assets outside the country.He added, ”Today there is panic among people who possess illegal assets outside India. The cumulative efforts of the last 65 years would not be even a minuscule percentage of what the government has done in last two years.’
NDA government formed SIT on black money as per the directive of the Supreme Court. We take action with regard to black money inside and outside the country in consultation with the SIT,’ FM said. First action against black money holders was those 600 odd case of HSBC bank. In those matters assessment has been completed and amounted to Rs 8000 crores and a couple of hundred of prosecution have been filed. ‘They are now facing trials in the courts. Let them strife. After this, the information received through International Consortium of Journalists and Panama Papers are also being dealt strictly. These 3 cases were like the information that landed in our lap. Apart form these through the compliance window for the black money holders at the rate of 60 % we got Rs 4500 crores,’ FM said.
‘According to reports there is a sizeable dip in the Indian holdings outside the country in last two years,’ he said adding that the country was taking various steps to make the real time information about the international money transactions a possibility in coming time and also to create such a mechanism which makes creation of black money inside the country virtually impossible. The illegal Indian asset holders abroad are panicked,’ he said that all the government wants is the Indian tax payer to come out clean.FM said that the government was not being vindictive or did not want to terrorize people but want to give them opportunity to come out clean. He said that the government however can’t let the honest tax payer to have less privilege than not so honest one who discloses his income at a later stage. ‘The then government in 1997 in the earlier version of the scheme had allowed less tax for those who declared income at a later stage thus making the regular tax payer feel cheated.
Jaitley said that the government was through various experiments working towards creating an Ideal taxation regime based on digital mode in which tax payers face least difficulties. ‘Today 94 % of the IT returns are filed through digital mode. Efforts were on to allow assessee’s to reply queries through emails,’ he said.
He said that the government want to ease the taxation process and increase the tax payers base so that its income necessary to implement several welfare schemes increases. The assessee with all the ease must understand that he should pay tax for the good of the country and not try to evade it. ‘In developed countries which provide quality life to unprivileged ones from the tax money. the avoidance and evasion of tax payment is treated as one and we are also going to take a cue from it while making the ideal tax regime,’ he said.
Chief Minister Mrs Anandiben Patel in her address expressed happiness over the first such seminar being held in Gujarat.
“Gujaratis are global traders. The state’s share in IT last fiscal was Rs 34865 crores with around 30 lakh tax payers and 1.57 crores PAN card holders. This share can increase with positive measures,’ She said.
Union Revenue Secretary Hasmukh Adhia briefed about the provisions of the scheme.
FM Jaitley will board the flight for Delhi , from Vadodara as Ahmedabad airport is undergoing runway recarpetting during afternoon and catch flight to Delhi from there at around 5.30 pm.
